Eddie Redmayne would "hate" playing James Bond

Just in case anyone was holding out hope that Eddie Redmayne might be a potential contender for the next Bond, the actor has ruled himself out.

Speaking to Variety, the ‘Theory of Everything’ Oscar-winner – now set to headline his own series, starting with new release ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ – was asked whether he’d fancy playing 007 as well, and his response was fairly blunt.

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Redmayne declared, “I definitely will not be playing James Bond. I would hate to see myself play James Bond. I love going to see James Bond and seeing really freaking cool actors that I admire doing great things.

“Never say never, but … no.”

Still, the 34-year old British actor did have a suggestion for who should be the next Bond: “Tom Hardy. Seeing him in ‘Inception,’ I thought he was so debonair.

“But are they even looking? See, you don’t know. Nobody knows. I love Daniel Craig.”

The past year has seen wide speculation as to whether or not Craig will return for a fifth Bond film, after notoriously replying “I’d rather slash my wrists” when asked about reprising the role again after 2015’s ‘Spectre.’

However, more recently Craig seems to have changed his tune, declaring in October, "if I were to stop doing it I would miss it terribly,“ calling the role "one of the most thrilling things you can do as an actor.”

Picture Credit: WENN, MGM-UA/Sony